Ford unveils all-new Shelby Mustang GT350

After nearly five decades, Ford is officially bringing back the Mustang GT350 complete with the most powerful normally-aspirated engine it has ever produced.

Following in the footsteps of the original Shelby Mustang GT350, not to mention the previous-generation Boss 302, the 2016 GT350 is less of a straight-line speed demon, more of a track-focused instrument trained to tackle apexes and corners.

The 2016 Shelby Mustang GT350.Handout /
Ford

Under the hood is a normally-aspirated 5.2-litre V8 complete with a flat-plane crankshaft. Similar to the ones used in race cars, this crankshaft arrangement sees crank pins rotate at 180-degree intervals, rather than the 90 degrees typical to production cars. The result is the GT350 breathes better with less overlap in exhaust pressure pulses.

Official horsepower and torque figures haven’t been detailed just yet, but Ford says the new V8 is good for more than 500 horsepower and 400 lb.-ft. of torque. That’s a healthy increase over the standard Mustang GT’s 435-horsepower and the 444-horsepower of the previous Mustang Boss 302, but short of the 662 horsepower pumped out by the outgoing Mustang GT500.

The 2016 Shelby Mustang GT350.Handout /
Ford

Given its new track-ready credentials, the new GT350 is armed with Ford’s MagneRide magnetic suspension damping system — a technology found in many other performance cars that system can fine-tune damping at each corner within milliseconds. Ford has also fitted the GT350 with a new Torsen limited-slip differential, a set of wide 19-inch alloy wheels wrapped by Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires and Brembo brakes at all four corners.

As any go-fast Mustang should, the 2016 GT350 looks business outside with a new front fascia and bodywork designed to maximize aerodynamics. Inside, the GT350 sports Recaro seats, a flat-bottom steering wheel and a new driver control system that changes the characteristics of the car’s ABS, traction and stability controls, as well as its suspension, throttle response, steering feel and, of course, the exhaust note.

Catch the 2016 Shelby Mustang GT350 at the L.A. Auto Show later this week.